The top 100 Irish last names explained

Find out more about your Irish roots and where your family name hails from

(O) Grady -  Ó Grádaigh (gráda, illustrious). A Dalcassian sept. The leading family went to Co. Limerick but the majority are still Clare where the prefix O is retained more than anywhere else. An important branch changed their name to Brady in the late sixteenth century. The well-known name Grady has to a large extent absorbed the rarer Gready which is properly a Mayo name.  This resulted in the name of Grady being numerous in north Connacht and adjacent areas of Ulster.

MacGrath - Magrath  Mac Graith, Mag Raith. The personal name in this case is Craith not Raith. The name of two distinct septs; viz. (i) that of Thomond who supplied hereditary ollamhs in poetry to the O’Briens, a branch of whom migrated to Co. Wexford; and (ii) of Termon MacGrath in north-west Ulster, a co-arb family. MacGrath is often called MacGraw in Co. Down and MacGragh in Donegal.

(O) Hagan - Ó hÁgáin. It is fairly well established that this name was originally Ó hÓgáin (from óg, young). It is that of an important Ulster sept: the leading family was of Tullahogue. Ó hAodhagáin, also anglicized O’Hagan, is said to be a distinct sep of Oriel, but owing to proximity of Co. Tyrone and Armagh, they are now indistinguishable. The Offaly name mentioned by Woulfe is now extinct or absorbed by Egan in Leinster. ÉO Dowd (a) Ó Dubhda. A branch settled in Kerry where they are called Doody. Another small sept of Ó Dubhda Co. Derry and they are usually Duddy now.

Hanlon - Ó hAluain (possibly from luan, champion, intensified by an) One of the most important of the septs of Ulster. The present association of the name with West Munster is of comparatively recent inception.

O'Hara - Ó hEaghra. An important dual sept located in Co. Sligo, the chiefs being O’Hara Boy (buidhe) and O’Hara Reagh (riabhach). A branch migrated to the glens of Antrim.

(O) Healy - Hely  This is Ó hÉalaighthe in Munster, sometimes anglicized Healihy, and ÓhÉilidhe in north Connacht, derived respectfully from words meaning ingenious and claimant. Ballyhelyon Lough Arrow was the seat of the altar. The Munster sept was located in Donoughmore, Co. Cork, whence was taken the title conferred on the Protestant branch.

(O) Heaney - Heeney T he Principal sept of this name is Ó hÉighnigh in Irish, important and widespread in Oriel, formerly stretching its influence into Fermanagh. Hegney is a variant. Another family of the name Ulster were erenaghs of Banagher in Co. Derry. Minor septs of Ó hÉanna (Éanna, old form of Enda), also anglicized Heaney, were of some note in Clare, Limerick, and Mayo up to the seventeenth century.

(O) Higgins - Ó hUigín (from an Old-Irish word akin to Viking, not from uige). A sept of the southern Uí Néill which migrated to Connacht. The O’Higgins father and son of South American fame came from Ballinary, Co. Sligo, not Ballina.

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